New senior executive for two major P&C brand names

Insurance industry veteran Guy Lecours has been appointed chief operating officer of L’Unique and Unica, effective Nov. 21.

Christian Fournier, executive vice president and lead of property and casualty insurance at Beneva, announced the appointment Wednesday. Lecours succeeds Yves Gagnon, who is retiring on Nov. 11 after 40 years in the industry.

“I am delighted about the appointment of Guy Lecours,” Fournier said in a press release Wednesday. “Thanks to his numerous achievements in the insurance field, his strategic vision and his unifying style, Guy Lecours will contribute to the development and innovation of our brokerage activities in Quebec and Ontario.”

Quebec City-based Beneva was formed in 2020 by the merger of Quebec City-based La Capitale and Sainte Foy-based SSQ Insurance. La Capitale had already been distributing P&C insurance through brokers in Ontario using the Unica brand in Ontario and the L’Unique brand in Quebec.

Beneva ranks as Canada’s 11th-largest insurer by market share, according to Canadian Underwriter‘s 2022 Stats Guide, using figures supplied by MSA Research.

Last November, Canadian Underwriter reported Beneva plans to replace its La Capital and SSQ direct-to-consumer brands, but, for now, it’s business as usual for the broker-distributed Unica and L’Unique brands.

With more than 25 years of experience in the insurance industry, Lecours has worked for insurers through brokerage networks for much of his career. A fellow of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, Lecours has held various senior management positions at major companies, mainly in Quebec but also elsewhere in Canada. He sits on several boards of directors, including that of the Groupement des assureurs automobiles (a group of auto insurers in Quebec) where he was chairman until March 2022.

He now joins the L’Unique and Unica team. With an in-depth knowledge of the Quebec market, L’Unique distributes a complete range of general insurance products. Unica Insurance provides niche commercial and personal insurance solutions to protect VIP clients’ home, vehicles and businesses.